The United States currently has 5% of the world’s population but 25% of the world’s prisoners. With a vote this past Tuesday in the Senate, however, the United States is poised to enact into law a criminal justice reform package that will turn the tide on that terrible statistic. At long last, America’s great experiment in mass incarceration is coming to a close with the FIRST STEP Act.

An Overwhelming Majority in Favor of FIRST STEP

In a 87 to 12 vote, the Senate passed FIRST STEP Act, which represents the biggest change to the prison and sentencing laws in the country in a generation. Indeed, the bipartisan vote demonstrates that Republicans and Democrats alike see that the huge federal prison population, due to harsh mandatory minimums and other tough-on-crime laws, is both expensive and unfair.

The FIRST STEP Act has a number of features. It will open up job training opportunities for soon-to-be-released prisoners, includes programs focusing on reducing recidivism rates for federal prisoners, and provides more early-release opportunities. It also makes some moderate changes to sentencing laws, including reducing mandatory minimums for non-violent drug offenders.

Of course, it should be noted that the legislation does not quite go as far as the more far-reaching bill that was moving through the Senate during the Obama Administration, called the Sentencing Reform and Corrections Act. But, as its title suggests, the bill just passed by the Senate is a “First Step” towards even more comprehensive and sensible sentencing and prison reform hopefully in the future.

The Way Is Clear for the FIRST STEP Act to Become Law

Now that the FIRST STEP Act has passed the Senate, the measure goes back to the House of Representatives for a vote. Earlier this year, the House passed a prior version of the FIRST STEP Act, and House leaders have promised to pass the Senate’s version this week. The President, whose support helped move the bill forward, has also promised to sign it.

While neither conservatives nor progressives see this as a perfect bill, the vote this past Tuesday is a welcomed breeze of bipartisan cooperation in a highly partisan climate. One thing that helped bring criminal justice reform to this point is the unlikely agreement of people and groups from both sides of the aisle. The push for criminal justice reform brought the American Civil Liberties Union on the same side as the American Conservative Union. It also brought the Koch brothers in line with the liberal Center for American Progress. That unlikely coalition was instrumental in the five-year-long push for criminal justice reform.

Both Sides Have Something to Celebrate

What is also great news to come from this bill is that both sides have something to celebrate. As for conservatives, the Trump Administration will tout this bill as a huge bipartisan achievement. In a world where President Trump is facing a number of investigations and Republicans suffered a serious defeat in the 2018 mid-term elections, this legislation will be seen as a victory. In fact, the President said, via Twitter, that the bill “will keep our communities safer, and provide hope and a second chance to those who earn it.”

For progressives, the passage of the FIRST STEP Act is a demonstration that the public has an appetite for changes in our criminal justice laws. That may be a sign that more aggressive criminal justice reform can be pursued in the future. As Democratic Senator Dick Durbin of Illinois stated, “I can’t remember any bill that has this kind of support, left and right, liberal and conservative, Democrat and Republican.” Cory Booker, Democrat from New Jersey echoed the importance of the moment stating that “[t]his is a very moving night for me . . . This is literally one of the reasons I came to the United States Senate, to get something like this done.”

Even Mitch McConnell Voted in Favor of the Bill

What is also worth noting is Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell’s conduct throughout. McConnell has been a fairly consistent roadblock in the way of criminal justice reform for the last five years. In fact, when pressure began to build with regard to passage of the bill in the Senate this past month, McConnell initially made moves to kill any debate, stating that the Senate would not have time to take up the measure before the holidays.

However, that changed when the pressure to move the bill intensified. Once McConnell announced that there would be a vote, he even surprised people by voting in favor of the FIRST STEP Act himself.

The Role of Jared Kushner

It is worth mentioning that this bill may not have garnered Republican attention under the Trump Administration if it was not for Jared Kushner. Kushner, whose father served time in jail for financial crimes, had a very personal connection to the issue and worked to convince many Republican senators to support it. The fact that Kushner is one of the President’s closest advisors also ensured that the issue would be on the President’s desk.

Overall, the passage of the FIRST STEP Act in the Senate paves the way for the bill to soon become law. It is a hopeful start to further criminal justice reform that will be a net positive for this country.